Elisra Presents New Data Link Technology Developments for UAVs at This Year's AUVSI

Elisra, a world leader in EW and wireless communication technologies, unveils its newly developed UAV data link systems at AUVSI’s Unmanned Systems North America 2009 Conference and Exhibition in Washington DC, August 11-13.

The company’s latest C-band Starlink and ADLS-2 solutions will be showcased, underscoring Elisra’s technological prowess in the UAV data link field.

Elisra’s C-band Starlink digital data link was designed for integration on tactical UAS and is now operational worldwide. The system delivers secure UAS-borne payload video images in real time to field commanders, dismounted troops and Special Operations Forces, providing them with critical reconnaissance and surveillance capabilities.

Immune to jamming and interference, this data link system provides the best inner-link solutions for interference, multipath, and coexistence. The C-band Starlink employs a Time Division Duplexing (TDD) method that produces high spectral efficiency (4 MHz per channel), operating in Single Frequency or Frequency Hopping modes with uplink and downlink traffic sharing the same frequency for efficient bandwidth use.

Based on COTS technology, this latest-generation data link system operates at ranges between zero and 100 km.

Elisra’s expertise and experience in developing custom-tailored wireless communication systems has led to their in-house developed miniaturized Air Data Terminal (ADT).

Besides its superior performance, this ADT is remarkable for its very low volume, weight, and power consumption. The Ground Data Terminal (GDT) is mounted on a dual-axis tracking system, allowing easy tracking of the target UAS and extending the Line-of-Sight (LOS) communication range to 100 kilometers

The Advanced Data Link System (ADLS-2) can be better understood not so much as a product, but rather as a hardware/software composite, custom tailored for each specific client and matched to specific circumstances, requirements and applications, even to a specific UAV model.

The system is best described as a technological process, reflecting Elisra’s efforts to remain at the forefront of technology with continually upgraded offerings. ADLS-2 is the company’s latest wireless communications system for MALE UAVs. This data link system is the first of its kind with the ability to transmit data, both video and audio, from five different UAV-borne payloads and 24 IP outputs, simultaneously.

ADLS-2 consists of an airborne segment – the Air Data Terminal (ADT) – and a ground segment – the Ground Data Terminal (GDT). These segments comprise a variety of units – each specifically configured according to customer needs, UAV type, and the platform’s payload capabilities.

The compartmentalized ground units receive UAV data and distribute it to their respective addressees. The GDT constitutes an integral part of the Ground Control Station (GCS), where personnel control the UAV and conduct two-way communications according to mission parameters. Elisra’s ADLS-2 offers latest generation solutions resulting in substantial weight and volume reductions as well as enhanced performance parameters. The new system can perform analog/digital data conversion.

The analog data from UAVs onboard payloads, received at the system’s Air Video and Data Modem (AVDM), is converted to digital format, coded and transmitted to the ground. There, the Ground Video and Data Modem (GVDM) reverses the process and directs the bundled information, be it video, audio, SAR imagery or GPS location data, to the intended recipients.